Help

Newsletter

Deeper harbor is key to Savannah port's growth

While the Port of Savannah hasn't seen vessels the size of the nearly 1,100-foot-long Hugo - and likely won't any time soon - it's attracting more and more large container ships, said Chris Rice, ship operations manager for Georgia Ports Authority.

"Among the largest we've had call on us are the MSC vessels Michaela and Alessia," he said.

At 998 feet long, Michaela can carry up to 6,400 20-foot containers. Alessia, although shorter by 13 feet, has a maximum capacity of 6,700 containers.

"It seems like they're getting bigger every time we turn around," he said.

"We know the vessels are getting larger with deeper drafts. And we know this deepening project is an absolute necessity if we are to accommodate growing volumes of cargo and capitalize on the opportunities and benefits connected with international trade for years to come," Marchand said in his State of the Ports address last month.

At present, no port in the Southeast can handle the largest container ships fully loaded. Like Savannah, their shipping lanes are just too shallow.

The port that is first to dredge deep enough to handle the largest ships - be it Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah or Jacksonville - will likely be at a competitive advantage.

GPA has been preparing for the bigger ships it knows are coming by adding such infrastructure as Container Berth 8, which will extend the Garden City Terminal docking space by up to 2,000 linear feet; and four super post-Panamax cranes, each with the reach and speed to handle the next generation of container ships.

After more than $32 million and 10 years of study, the harbor deepening project will be presented for public comment early next year.

It's Marchand's hope that, once all questions are answered and concerns addressed, dredging could begin as early as 2008.

"This project is not only critical to every industry along the river, but to the future vitality of our economy," he said.